The Visor

North Canton High School considers removing class rankings

March 19, 2010

Lindsay Huth

Many high school students rush to see their standings in the class rankings at the end of the quarter. For students at Hoover High School in Canton, that may no longer be the case.

The North Canton Board of Education debated removing class rankings from the school because it is not mandatory for college admission and may even be more harmful for students than useful.

Many academically challenging schools such as Eden Prairie High School in St. Paul, Minnesota have already been considering it. Principal Conn McCartan argued that removing the rankings will free the students from pressure to take easy courses that would guarantee them an A and allow them to pursue more challenging classes instead. Eden Prairie does not give extra weighting the honors and AP classes, and being in the top ten percent of the graduating class typically mandates at least a 3.89 GPA.

Judy Hoover, the chairwoman of the Hoover’s Guidance Department, said that if rankings are not placed in the students’ college application, colleges are more likely to examine their course choices and grades more closely.

Admissions.com confirms that class rank is not extremely influential in admission decisions, but being in the top ten percent of the class is still impressive.

Instead of the annual Top 25 awards ceremony, Hoover High would honor high achievers by awarding summa, magna and cum laude recognition and hosting a “Summa Celebration.”

Still, the proposal has been under criticism for being weak and not properly rewarding those who work hard. The district administration is still considering all sides of the issue.

”We need to take a 360-degree look at this,” Superintendent Michael Gallina said according to the Akron Beacon Journal.

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